Carrilleras Estofadas - Braised Pork Cheeks in red wine

Or, in my case braised Sainsburys Basics pork chops because I didn't have cheeks.

Fragrant and sweetly spiced Spanish slow braised pork

This is a delicious recipe from Omar Allibhoy's book Tapas Revolution.  The recipes are beautifully written and illustrated and so yummy.  There aren't only recipes for tapas, there are main meals and deserts too.

Omar's recipe calls for Pedro Ximenez Sweet Sherry, I don't keep it in so used white vermouth instead.  All of the other ingredients I had in store except 175ml of red wine so bought a miniature bottle.  This recipe is for 4 servings as a main course and so the cost was justified.

I have deviated a little from the recipe and method, it wouldn't be like me not to and so set out below is how I made mine.

The aromas emitting from your kitchen will make your tummy rumble, you have been warned!

Ingredients (as I cooked it):

1. 4 large leg chops (the Sainsburys Basics range chops x 2 are marbled with fat and huge, so perfect for this recipe)
2. 2 tsp salt
3. 2 tbsp flour
4. 100ml olive oil
5. 1 onion, left whole as Himself doesn't eat them but I love them in big chunks
6. 6 garlic cloves peeled and left whole
7. 3 carrots chopped into chunks
8. 1 stick of celery (I finely chopped mine) 
9. 2 bay leaves from the garden
10. Thyme from the garden
11. A small piece of cinnamon stick
12. 5 black peppercorns, I roughly crushed mine in a pestle and mortar
13. 3 tomatoes chopped roughly
14. 175ml white vermouth (I always have a bottle by the cooker and use instead of wine as it goes further)
15. 175ml red wine
16. 1 beef stock cube
17. 1 litre of cold water 

Method:

Let the tomatoes cook down well

Firstly dip the pork into flour seasoned with half of the salt and fry over a high heat in the olive oil for a couple of minutes each side until browned.  Reserve into foil and keep wrapped up.

Next add the onion, carrots and celery to the pan and brown them slightly, then in with the garlic cloves, herbs and tomatoes.  Let it cook until the tomatoes have softened and the juices evaporated.  Once that's done add the dry spices, vermouth and red wine.

Reducing the sauce prior to adding water

Bring up to boiling point and boil rapidly for around 15 minutes until thickened then add 1 litre of cold
water with the crumbled stock cube.  Bring back to the boil and then let it simmer gently, uncovered, for 2 hours or until tender.

If the sauce isn't thick enough you can either leave to simmer for a while longer to reduce or add a teaspoon of cornflour mixed with a little cold water to make a paste.

I accompanied this meal with boiled new potatoes from my potato pots in the kitchen garden.